From Being a Pro on the European Tour to Mentoring Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy, One of the Best Coaches in the World. Who Is Pete Cowen?

A golfer would be able to excel in the gentleman’s game if he is willing to put in an extreme amount of hard work and perseverance. However, even so, without a person to guide and assist the athlete closely, the effect wouldn’t be half as successful. And this is exactly what Pete Cowen has done throughout his career, making waves as golf’s most successful coach, and guiding big names such as Brooks Koepka and Rory McIlroy.

The icon has remained true to the game of golf, all the while pushing ahead with his passion for the sport. His goal at one point in time was to exhibit his skills on the greens. However, there was another side to the golfer that the sporting realm was yet to see. Throughout the years, the golf world has seen Cowen become nothing short of a legend in the game, earning the respect of many!

Meet Peter Cowen, the ex-pro golfer

Peter Lewis Cowen was born in January 1951 in the city of Sheffield, Yorkshire. He played on the European Tour from 1970 to 1980. Although he had to take a break for two years owing to a back injury, the golfer took on the field as a professional for close to 10 years during that time.

However, Cowen did not experience a lot of success on the circuit. He has just managed a single professional win in his career, emerging victorious at the 1976 Zambia Open. In an exclusive interview, the Englishman recalled his professional days as he said, “I had very middling success—I was a failure, really—and my time to be famous came and went.” And what awaited the pro was a chance to be part of something more special, guiding aspiring golfers to glory.

Cowen’s legendary coaching career

Although the European had an uneventful career as a pro, he managed to turn it around to propel himself to fame as a coach. He started off his tutoring career at the Lindrick Golf Club. However, a call from Chubby Chandler in 1995 helped him take the first step toward what would be an iconic career. He called Cowen up and asked him if he could help Lee Westwood. The rest is history, as the professional went on to win a total of 25 times in the next five years.

He has guided a lot of players, including the likes of Sergio Garcia, Darren Clarke, Westwood, Thomas Bjorn, Louis Oosthuizen, and Graeme McDowell, among others. The instructor has a total of over 250 PGA Tour victories along with eight majors in his career.

He was also the swing coach for McIlroy. They joined hands in 2021 owing to some problems that he had with his techniques as a result of the ‘speed training’ he adopted the previous year. However, the partnership lasted just eight months as the Northern Irishman saw himself reuniting with his childhood coach, Michael Bannon. But even so, McIlroy had denied any rumors of their split, all the while disclosing how he would always ask for help from the Englishman should he need it.

The trainer keeps a very low profile in the community. Even so, Cowen’s name has grown to spread far and wide, owing to the amount of commitment he has put in as a coach, which has led many of his pupils to emerge triumphant in various events. He has a very simple approach to teaching, simplifying the “fundamentals of the golf swing” while focusing on the game’s key aspects.

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The English coach follows an open-door policy while on tour and at his three academies. He has two of them in Dubai, while the other is in Rotherham. Moreover, Cowen has formed a fee structure that is unique to him. The ex-pro’s company, Top Ten Golf Limited, works based on the performance of the golfer. He gets a total of 4 percent of the winnings of the player if, and only if, he finishes inside the top 10.

The extreme confidence the Englishman has in his teachings is warranted. With the number of wins that his pupils boast, it is only natural that he gets dubbed one of the best in the field. And now, the coach is currently leading the way for Koepka, whom he is all praise for.

Pete Cowen shares his thoughts on Brooks Koepka

The 72-year-old, in an interview, mentioned how the LIV pro is the best player in his generation of golfers. Adding on, he pointed out how the only thing “stopping him” from winning majors were the injuries that plagued the professional. Moreover, Cowen was quick to express his disbelief as he exclaimed how he doesn’t understand why the 33-year-old is not able to “win every tournament.”

What’s more, the trainer was very optimistic of the 9X PGA Tour winner’s future as he divulged how winning more majors to rake the number up to “double digits” is very “achievable for him,” all the while alluding to how he is halfway to the mark. Well, what about the LIV golfer? He openly credits the Englishman for vastly improving his short game.

The two started their partnership after the professional won his European Tour card. And, since then, the pro has experienced tremendous success, with five more major titles coming his way. With the amount of confidence that Koepka’s coach puts in him, it would come as a surprise if he didn’t make a mark in the game.

Who, in your opinion, is the greatest coach of all time? Share your thoughts and views with us in the comments below.

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(To know more about Pete Cowen’s fascinating journey, tune in to the ESFanCast, LIVE this Friday at 11:00 AM ET. We sit down with the renowned coach who has guided exceptional golfers on the course to glory through his extraordinary teachings)